t-23 randomly turns off on AC

[Shack80]

Having a strange issue with my T-23. It will randomly turn off ( not shut down, instant off) when running on AC. This never happens with the Battery. I have tried running with and without the Batt. installed as well as tried a new ac adapter, same thing. Sometimes it will run 30 minutes to an hour without shutting off, and then sometimes it will shutdown shortly after entering windows.

I am guessing this is likely an issue that can not easily be fixed, but I can always hope.

[bonestonne]

hmm well, i had a similar issue, it turned out to be a voltage regulator that popped off the board...drove me to just buy a new one, its definitely not something fixable. reason its not happening when you're on battery is because that regulator doesn't get used from battery power, just from AC to mainboard/battery charging.

my old board when through 'surgery' twice trying to get the part to stay on the board, with no results either time.

one way that i know to check:

pop off your keyboard and look around under the plastic cover, directly to the right of that will be a reddish round coil...if that's not firmly in place, you've got a problem.

there are companies around that you can send your laptop to and they'll fix issues like that, you can find them on ebay and such, but they don't offer much service past soldering items to the mainboard.

hope you find a fix, thats a killer, makes it plenty hard to charge a battery.

[Shack80]

Thanks for the reply, I am not expecting this to be something worth repairing, though I hope or a simple fix. Odly it recharges the battery just fine. So the Laptop has about 1 hours use at a time, that is something.

[phool@round]

...drove me to just buy a new one, its definitely not something fixable.

my old board when through 'surgery' twice trying to get the part to stay on the board, with no results either time.

bonestonne: What wattage soldering iron did you use? How long did you hold the iron on? Did you remove the system board while attempting to repair? For something to come loose again it sounds like you either created cold solder joints with not enough heat or being too quick to pull the iron away or maybe flowed the solder too thin. Tinning the tip helps to transfer the heat of the iron with greater efficiency.

Shack80: It is something worth fixing. It's less expensive than obtaining another board. It's not as difficult as it sounds. A 25 or 35 Watt soldering iron will do. If you've not soldered before just ask and I will be more than glad to help you through the process. Also there is a "Sticky" = http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=21979 on two other components that reside on the bottom of your board that have a habit of coming loose and creating interesting problems. I would check those as well while you (if you choose) have the system board out.

Here is a link to the manual that will help you take your T23 apart; ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/pc/pccbbs/mo ... 2p9631.pdf

All in all these are very simple fixes and will last a long time if done properly. Again, let me know if you need help.

[draco2527]

I have fixed TONS of these without any problems. The problem will not return if you do this:

Solder the part in place (try to use HOT AIR) and not a soldering gun. Once you let the part COOL mix some epoxy and place on the coil GO WITH SMALL AMOUNTS try to get it to go under the coil...problem solved!

This is what they started doing on the T4X series for the GPU problem. That is why they have the "red" epoxy around them...

EDIT: I forgot to mention, if look at the coil it is "huge" compared to the small area that it has to solder to the board plus considering that it sits upside-down in a high stress area I think will not end good in the long run...that is why I use the epoxy. "Board" cleaner (Radio Shack) will disolve the epoxy should you need to remove it after hardening. On another note MAKE SURE THE THING WORKS before you epoxy!!! and check polarity...

[Shack80]

Thanks for all the great info. I am going to be out of town for 2 weeks, but ater that I will take apart my t23 and try this fix, I am sure I will be picking your brains. Thanks again, this is a great site.

[bonestonne]

15W soldering iron, less than one second of indirect touch [let the wire or solder carry the heat].

one of the tries i got the coil back on, but it still wouldn't start.

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g142/ ... G_1776.jpg
^thats the job i had to do to get the SVP so i could use my TP again. while the one lead doesn't look stable, its fine, and my baby has no problems whatsoever.

the one coil was just not working for me.

btw, silver bearing solder is a must, not any other type. 15W soldering iron is the most you want for this as well.

i've thought about just using hot air, but i didn't trust it too much.